Richard Gere to Star in BBC's 'MotherFatherSon' in First Major TV Role

Chicago and Pretty Woman actor Richard Gere will star in the BBC's eight-part drama MotherFatherSon, the actor announced Tuesday.

"It's been almost 30 years since I worked in television. I'm so pleased to be working now with the BBC on this extraordinary, eight-hour project with such talented people and which resonates so much to the time we live in," he said in a statement.

Filming is set to begin this summer in London and on location in Spain. The series will co-star Helen McCrory and Billy Howle.

"Richard Gere will play Max, a charismatic self-made American businessman with media outlets in London and around the world. Helen McCrory will play Kathryn, a British heiress who has been estranged from Max following the breakdown of their marriage some years before," a news release said.

"Their 30-year-old son, Caden, runs Max's U.K. newspaper and is primed to follow in his father's footsteps as one of the most powerful men in the world. But when Caden's self-destructive lifestyle spirals out of control, the devastating consequences threaten the future of the family, its empire and a country on the brink of change."

Gere's small-screen credits include Kojak, Strike Force and Chelsea D.H.O. He also starred in the films The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, Runaway Bride, Primal Fear and An Officer and a Gentleman.